Clearwater Credit Union Increases CD Balances By 40% In 4 Months

THE CHALLENGE

Clearwater Credit Union is the largest Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) in Montana. Their Chief Marketing Officer, who was aware of Claritas prior to us working with the credit union, challenged us to help them gain deeper insight into their membership. They also wanted to better understand the audiences in their previously identified expansion markets to help inform and develop market-specific strategies.

SOLUTION

Clearwater engaged in a custom analysis, which included appending P$YCLE® Premier to their member records for target group creation. The accompanying marketing guide highlighted data like which media channels to focus advertising efforts on and which products aligned with their member’s values.

Using these insights, they tested a 60-day CD campaign with their standard $100 minimum. This is a low barrier of entry for those who traditionally could not interact with products like these. They deployed multichannel campaigns across print media, YouTube, Facebook, and their website, to P$YCLE Premier target groups across three key markets. The campaign quickly gained traction, leading Clearwater to extend its life for two more months.

After four months, they measured a nearly 40% bump in CD balances. This was attributed in part to using the segmentation media preferences data to drive their media buying strategy. In fact, this was the first time they had applied analytics to a media strategy. Previously they focused on a broad market approach to advertising. That said, it certainly won’t be the last time.